The Van Nuys News, Van Nuys, California, Thursday, August 2, 1973
VALLEY MAN FOUND DEAD AFTER SEVERE BEATING
The severely beaten body of a North Hollywood man was found lying on the shoulder of Mulholland Drive late Tuesday following what authorities termed a brutal slaying.
The county coroner’s office identified the man as Theodore H. Gould, 29, of 11941 Albers Street. Police said they were looking for a suspect who was spotted running from the scene by a passerby.
The body was found about 11 p.m. lying outside a parked car which was headed in the wrong direction on Mulholland Drive between Laurel Pass Ave. and Laurel Canyon Ave, police said. A woman driving past the dead body called police.
Gould apparently died after being bludgeoned about the head and face, possibly with a rock, authorities said.
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The Van Nuys News, Van Nuys, California, Friday, August 3, 1973
Link Slaying to Suspect In Car Theft
A 19-year-old North Hollywood man was booked yesterday on suspicion of murder by Los Angeles police after being arrested by Gardena authorities for auto theft.
The arrested man was identified as Jerry Lee Sumerlin of 10620 Victory Blvd. He was booked in connection with the murder of 26-year-old Theodore H. Gould of 11941 Albers St., North Hollywood. Gould’s severely beaten body was found lying on the shoulder of Mulholland Drive near Laurel Canyon Blvd. late Tuesday night.
Investigators said Sumerlin was arrested Wednesday for auto theft charge but was booked again by police just before noon yesterday on the murder charge.
Authorities declined to discuss a possible motive in the case. They said the suspect was scheduled to be arraigned in Municipal Court in Van Nuys this afternoon. Gould apparently died after being savagely beaten, possibly with a rock, about the head and face, police said. An autopsy has been scheduled.
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Van Nuys News, August 6, 1973
Youth 19 Charged With Beating Death of Man
Nineteen-year-old Jerry Lee Sumerlin of 10620 Victory Blvd, North Hollywood, was formally charged with first degree murder, Friday in the beating death of Theodore H. Gould.
Sumerlin pleaded innocent before Municipal Court Judge Edward Davenport, in Van Nuys, who scheduled a preliminary hearing for August 14 in Division 104. No bail was set. He was arrested by Gardena police Wednesday on suspicion of auto theft, but turned over to Los Angeles authorities Thursday.
Gould’s body was found lying on the shoulder of Mulholland Drive near Laurel Canyon Blvd. by a passerby late Tuesday. He had been beaten to death, an autopsy revealed. He was 29.
Authorities declined to discuss a possible motive for the murder, but said only that the defendant and Gould, who had lived at 11941 Albers Street, North Hollywood, had known each other.
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The Van Nuys News, Van Nuys, California, Friday, August 24, 1973
STRUGGLE DESCRIBED DURING HEARING ON DEATH OF MAN
A witness testified Wednesday that he observed a “struggle” between two men in a car parked on Mulholland Drive near Laurel Canyon Blvd. late on the evening of July 31 which resulted in the death of a Burbank man.
David Swezey 27, the witness, also testified that Jerry Lee Sumerlin, the defendant, had told him twice earlier that evening that Theodore H. Gould he was going to “get” Theodore H. Gould 29, the victim.
Arraignment Set
Sumberlin was held to answer on a murder charge following a preliminary hearing before Municipal Judge Leila Bulgrin. He is scheduled to be arraigned on Wednesday, Sept. 5, at 8:30 a.m. in Superior Court in Van Nuys, Dept. R.
Swezey, who has been granted immunity from prosecution in exchange for his testimony, said he drove a short distance behind a car containing Gould and Sumberlin to the isolated hilltop location and was “about five to eight yards" when he witnessed the killing.
Sumerlin was holding Gould’s head back and making slashing motions at his throat. I could hear Gould say, “no, Jerry, no,” and then he screamed,”Swezey testified.
Events Cited
Swezey said that Sumerlin, Gould and himself were under the influence of LSD at the time of the slaying, and that the defendant had lured Gould to the isolated location by telling him they were going to obtain more LSD from a drug “rip-off” which had taken place in Burbank a couple of nights before.
Swezey answered “yes” but said he couldn’t recall details when prosecuting Dept. Dist. Atty. Sterling Norris asked, “Did the defendant ever say anything to you to the effect that Gould was talking too much?”
Witness Testified
Mrs. Valerie Swezey 30, who also has been given immunity, said that when Sumerlin returned to his apartment at 10620 Victory Blvd. about three hours after the killing, he stated, “I used a razor blade; I cut his (Gould’s) throat and just to make sure I took a rock to his head.”
Gould’s severely beaten body was found by police after they had received a call from a woman driving by the Mulholland location. She also reportedly gave police a description of a man she saw fleeing from the vicinity of Gould’s parked vehicle.
Sumerlin, who police said migrated from Virginia about five months ago, was arrested in Gardena the day after the killing. Police said Gould, a life-long resident of Burbank had been living in North Hollywood. Judge Bulgrin denied a defense motion that bail be set for Sumerlin, who remains in County Jail.
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The Van Nuys News, Thursday, November 1, 1973
Trial Postponed for Valley Man In Beating Death
Trial has been continued until Friday, December 7, for a North Hollywood man charged with the beating death of a Burbank man last July 31, on Mulholland Drive near Laurel Canyon Blvd. The trial is scheduled for Superior Court in Van Nuys Dept. M.
Jerry Lee Sumerlin 19, who had been living at 10620 Victory Blvd., was arrested about a day after the body of Theodore H. Gould 29, was found at the hilltop location. Sumerlin is being held at County Jail without bail.
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